Pitt to Host Three Pittsburgh Premieres During Asian Film Festival Oct. 7, 14, and 21

PITTSBUGH-For nearly 20 years, Pitt's Asian Studies Center (ASC) within the University Center for International Studies has organized a Japanese film series. As a result of the worldwide critical acclaim recently received by Chinese and Korean films, ASC has expanded the series to include the Pittsburgh premieres of films from China and Korea as well as Japan. The Asian Film Festival will take place at 7 p.m. three consecutive Fridays in October-the 7th, 14th, and 21st-in Carnegie Mellon University's McConomy Hall, which is in the University Center, 5032 Forbes Ave., Oakland. All screenings are free and open to the public.

The film festival, "New from Asia: From S.F. to Social Drama," begins Oct. 7 with a screening of the Japanese film Godzilla: Final Wars (2004). The film is directed by Ryuhei Kitamura and is the final film in the Godzilla series, which spans 50 years. The film is in Japanese with English subtitles.

On Oct. 14, the Korean film Christmas in August (1998) will be shown. Directed by Jin-ho Hur, the film won Korean awards for best film, best director, best actress, and best cinematography. Christmas in August brings a sober beauty to one of life's surest yet most difficult realities, death. Featuring Suk-kyu Han, Eun-ha Shim, Goo Shin, Ji-hy Oh, and Han-wi Lee, the film is in Korean with English subtitles.

The festival ends Oct. 21 with the screening of the Chinese film Unknown Pleasures (2002). Directed by Jia Zhangke, the film follows two 19-year-olds as they pursue pleasure in pool halls, dance clubs, and karaoke bars, before eventually embarking on a half-baked bank robbery attempt.

The 2005 Asian Film Festival is organized by ASC, in collaboration with Carnegie Mellon University's Department of Modern Languages and Modern Languages Student Advisory Council. Funding for the series has been provided by ASC, with a National Resource Center Grant from the U.S. Department of Education and Pitt's Japan Iron and Steel Federation/Mitsubishi Endowment. For more information, call Pitt's Department of East Asian Languages and Literatures at 412-624-5568.